A Burlington family is out of its home and without two pets after a house fire that caused extensive damage Thursday afternoon.

Around 1 p.m., roofing workers next door to 615 S. Mebane St. heard the sound of glass breaking and walked over to see smoke billowing from the house and the basement on fire.

The roofers, from Alpha Omega Roofing, called 911 and attempted to rescue a dog that they heard inside the house, but were unable to open a back door.

“He was barking, and then he just stopped,” said Ryan Harris, one of the workers. “We couldn’t get in there.”

Chief Deputy Michael Willets of the Burlington Fire Department confirmed that a pet bird also was stuck inside the house during the fire. Harris was told the bird was a parrot.

The house is owned by Lawrence and Sandra Parker, who have lived there for more than 20 years, according to tax records and next door neighbor Rob Sharpe, who had hired the roofers to make some repairs on his garage from storm damage.

“They’ve made so many improvements to the property over the past 20 years,” said Sharpe, a defense attorney and Republican candidate for Alamance County district attorney.

Sharpe, who grew up across the street, said prior to the Parkers owning the property, it was a boarding house.

Willets said upon arrival, Burlington firefighters encountered heavy smoke and a working fire in the basement. Some of the fire spread into the first floor of the two-story home, and the fire was under control at 1:52 p.m., about 50 minutes after the 16 firefighters arrived.

The Burlington Police Department blocked off a portion of South Mebane Street while firefighters responded to the fire, and Alamance County Rescue brought its rehabilitation trailer to the scene, along with EMS workers on standby.

Willets said damage to the structure of the house is estimated at $80,000, with an additional $50,000 to its contents.

He said it won’t be habitable until “fairly extensive repairs” are made.